Bye Bye Beautiful
by starsword
Summary: Songfic to Nightwish Bye Bye Beautiful. Abby can't stand the pain and awkwardness any more. She loves working on the anomaly project but she knows things can't go on like this so she does the only thing she can. Stabby angst.
1. Bye Bye Beautiful

_A/N: Yeah I'm really into my __oneshots__ at the moment. The lyrics are from a song on the new __Nightwish__ album, the song is called Bye __Bye__ Beautiful hence the name of the __fic__. I heard the song, loved it, and thought maybe we could have some __Stabby__ angst... there MIGHT be a sequel to this... not sure yet... depends__ how I feel about it after I finished the chapter... I might decide to make this a 2 chapter __fic__... we'll see._

**Bye ****Bye**** Beautiful**

Abby knew this wasn't what she wanted, she knew she wanted to stay, but it had gotten to the stage where she _couldn't_ stay any longer. She loved working with the team, but lately things had gotten too awkward, too bad. Ever since that argument. She brushed away a tear that was falling down her cheek and got out of her mini, locking it and walking across the University grounds to Nick's office. She just hoped Stephen wouldn't be there, she didn't know if she could go through with it if he was there as well. Connor had managed to get a flat of his own so she wouldn't have a constant reminder of all the good times she'd had with the team any more.

Her mind wandered back to the first time she'd met the team, she'd gone to collect Rex from Ben in the Forest of Dean and they'd been frightened by the Gorgonopsid; then she'd run into the herbivore and they'd appeared behind her, Nick telling her not to move. That was the first time she'd seen _him_, and she'd been attracted to him from the start. She caught sight of him up ahead and ducked into another corridor, waiting for a few minutes before peering round the corner and seeing he was gone. She sighed, swallowing the lump that had risen in her throat and rubbed at her eyes, trying to hold back the tears that were building up. She hurried along the corridors, wanting to get to Nick's office before she lost her courage and her resolve wavered. How had it gotten this bad?

_Did you ever hear what I told you?_

He'd slipped a note into her bag asking her to meet him that evening at his flat. She'd gone and, finally, they'd got their feelings out in the open. She'd told him everything about why she'd held back for a while, how all of her ex-boyfriends had caused her pain every time she broke up a relationship, including the once when she'd been beaten after breaking up with her last boyfriend. She still had a scar on her forearm from it; she rubbed it subconsciously as she walked, remembering how he'd held her as they sat on his couch when she told him, rubbing the scar and having a look in her eyes that made her knew he'd never let anyone touch her like that again. In the end he'd inflicted more pain than any of the others. She'd opened herself up to him, given him everything, and then they'd had that argument. That argument, under a week ago, had torn apart everything she'd built on this past month she'd been with him. She couldn't even remember how it had started, but they'd ended up screaming at each other, bringing up each other's pasts as ammunition, knowing they were being unfair and stupid but being so angry and upset at the other that they didn't care.

_Did you ever read what I wrote you?_

She'd knew he'd been ignoring the texts she sent him to try and apologize, just as she'd done at first, knew he'd diverted her calls, just as she'd done at the beginning. So she'd written it down on a letter for him, giving it to Nick and asking him to make sure Stephen read it, Nick had nodded with a sad smile for her. She didn't know if he'd ever read it, Nick hadn't told her what had happened, but she knew she couldn't keep going on like this; she couldn't keep seeing him, working with him, when she couldn't mend the scars they'd both inflicted.

_Did you ever listen to what we played?_

Unbidden her mind flew back to that night a few weeks ago when the whole team had gone out for a night, it had been karaoke night and Conner had put her and Stephen's names down for 'I've Had The Time Of My Life' from Dirty Dancing. She had to admit they'd enjoyed it, she'd meant every word she'd sung and she thought he had as well.

_Did you ever let in what the world said?_

Everyone had said they'd made the perfect couple, Claudia had taken Abby aside a week after she and Stephen had gotten together and the two had ended up in fits of laughter as they'd talked nonstop about the two men they loved. She had glowed with happiness when Nick had come to congratulate them on finally getting together, especially when he'd embraced Stephen like a brother, knowing how much it had meant to him.

She finally reached Nick's office; she took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Nick's voice called out from the room and she opened the door and walked in, closing it softly behind her. She sighed with relief when she saw Stephen wasn't in the room; Claudia was and she stood up, smiling at the young woman.

'Hi, Abby,' Claudia said; Abby smiled back in reply, trying desperately to find her voice and keep her tears back. She tried to speak but was only able to mouth the word 'Hi'

'Abby, what's wrong?' Nick asked her, coming over.

'I'm sorry... I can't do this anymore,' she replied, one of the tears she'd been fighting to keep back escaping, 'I've come to resign from the anomaly project.'

Nick and Claudia had similar looks of shock on their faces.

'Why?' Claudia asked her; Abby couldn't bear to look at the woman who'd become a close friend to her.

'I can't go on like this, Claudia, I'm sorry but I just can't... I love working with all of you but... I can't keep seeing- seeing him and knowing I can't apologize and try and fix things- it's too painful. I've got to go.'

She turned and was halfway up the stairs before she turned around.

'Abby, please don't leave we need you on this project. Not just because of your skills but because of you as a person. Don't leave,' Claudia begged her. Abby shook her head.

'If you need any information on lizards or reptiles give me a call. I'm so sorry.'

She walked up the last few stairs and reached out to open the door as it opened of its own accord. They stood, looking at each other for about a minute.

'Abby-' Claudia started to try and convince her to stay again but the younger woman ran past Stephen, tears streaming down her face as she ran back through the corridors of the University. Stephen watched her run away, racing around the corner and out of sight.

_Did we get this far just to feel your hate?_

_Did we play to become only pawns in the game?_

He remembered when he'd first told her how he felt, after the Arthropleura had bitten him and she'd stayed by his side that whole time. How had it come to this? All those stupid games they'd played on the journeys to anomaly sights with Conner and Nick and all the laughs they'd shared. How had he lost her so easily? Silence ensued in the room after Abby's departure. Claudia and Nick exchanged a look and then Nick walked over to Stephen's desk and picked up the unopened letter.

'I think you'd better read this,' he told his friend, 'Otherwise you'll never see her again. She just came to tell us she's leaving the anomaly project.'

Stephen looked at Nick in shock, the Professor held the younger man's gaze until he took the letter from his hand; opening the envelope he took out the two sheets of paper. Claudia watched as Stephen sunk into a chair, completely engrossed in the letter from the broken woman who had just left.

_How blind can you be, don't you see_

_You chose the long road but we'll be waiting_

Stephen looked up at Nick when he'd finished, a lost look in his eyes as he silently begged the Professor to tell him how to fix things. Claudia sighed and sat down as the younger man buried his face in his hands and, for the first time she'd seen, wept openly. Nick looked at her, asking her what they could do to help their two friends.

'Stephen,' he looked up at her, silently begging to help, 'You need to go after her. If you don't do it now you'll never get another chance.'

Stephen looked up at the door where Abby had disappeared through. Claudia could see a single tear falling down his cheek.

_Bye __bye__ beautiful_

Stephen shook his head, 'I'm too late. She'll never listen to me now.'

'She won't if you keep thinking that,' Claudia replied. Stephen looked at the letter still clutched in his hands.

'Go after her now, Stephen, or I'll _personally_ make sure you never speak to or see her again. If you don't go after her and talk to her now then you obviously don't care about her as much as you say you do and have led her to believe you do.'

Stephen looked up at Nick, pain evident in his eyes but the Professor kept his gaze firm.

Stephen took one more look at the letter before folding it up, standing up, and running out of the room.

_Bye __bye__ beautiful_

_A/N: What do you think? Shall I put up another chapter of this? I could leave it as it is and make you all wonder whether Stephen actually does go after Abby or if he just runs out of the room to get away from everyone. Please R&R I want to know if you want me to put up the next chapter... even though I probably will anyway. __Lol_

_Ciao for now_

_Starsword_


	2. If You Stay With Me

_A/N: I know that the title of the chapter doesn't correspond with the title of the song I use but I thought the title 'Rule __The__ World' didn't really fit in with the chapter so I changed it. I hop__e__ all you __Take__ That purists can forgive me.__ Anyway there seemed to be a lot of people wanting the sequel to the last chapter so here it is: (If you ask very __very__ nicely I may be tempted to write another chapter... but it depends how this chapter finishes...)_

**If You Stay With Me**

Abby sat on a wall, her arms hugging her waist as she stared at the paving stones, lost in thought. She shivered as a slight wind blew around her, blowing a few strands of her hair into her eyes. She remembered the times they'd sat together and just been content to sit in silence and hold each other, taking comfort in the joined warmth of their bodies. Abby felt colder as she thought of it, remembering when they'd fallen asleep and she'd woken up before him and listened to his heart beating and his slow, relaxed breathing; it had lulled her back to sleep and she'd woken up much later. That was the night she'd stayed around his for the first time. She hugged herself tighter, trying to block out the memories that were crowding her mind's eye; maybe she should take a holiday, go and visit her friend in America. Abby looked out over the University grounds at the various people that were walking along the paths, couples and groups of friends. She sighed, brushing away the lone tear that had started to fall down her cheek and then put her arm back around her slightly shivering body, why couldn't she ever make relationships work?

She felt a pair of strong arms encircle her waist as a warm body came up close behind her, almost touching her back as the familiar and still comforting scent wrapped itself around her and pulled her back against his chest.

He buried his face in the side of her neck; their tears, fresh and old, mingled together. Abby turned her head to bury her face in his hair, fighting to keep from losing control of her emotions.

'I'm sorry,' he murmured; his lips brushing against her skin, his arms tightening around her protectively. Wanting to take her away from all the pain, even though he knew he was the one causing it.

_Yeah you and me we can ride on a star_

_If you stay with me girl_

_We can rule the world_

'No, I'm sorry,' she said, pulling her head back to look at him, 'The thing I said-'

'Abby, I've got as much to apologise for as you have-'

She pressed a finger to his lips, smiling up at him through her tears, 'Let's not talk about it anymore,' she said, tracing his lips with her finger, his gaze setting off butterflies in her stomach. Stephen looked at her for a few minutes, the look in his eyes holding her motionless.

'How can you forgive me so easily? After everything that's happened with our argument and Helen...'

Abby rested her head against his chest, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him closer.

'Because it's harder to carry on like this, not being with you and not knowing whether you're angry with me or whether you hate me, than it is to be angry at you,' she told him, the tears finally leaking from her eyes. Stephen's arms tightened around her, crushing her against his chest.

'What did I do to deserve you?' he muttered, more speaking his thoughts than actually asking her the question. Abby smiled slightly.

'Probably something along the same lines of what I did to deserve you,' she replied, pulling back to look at him. The smile of happiness on her face made his insides melt and he pulled her to him, crushing his lips to hers. The kiss was about reassuring each other they were there, and that they weren't going anywhere.

_Yeah you and me we can light up the sky_

_If you stay by my side_

_We can rule the world_

'Get a room!' one of the students from a passing group yelled; Stephen's only response was to put up one finger in their general direction and then wrap his arm back around Abby's waist. Abby's laugh made them break apart. Stephen took her hand.

'Come on, let's get out of here and go back to mine,' he said, leading her to the SUV he and Cutter used.

'You sure Cutter won't mind you leaving and taking the car?' Abby asked, smiling up at him. Stephen shrugged.

'He'll just have to cope,' he replied; she laughed as they reached the car.

Stephen pulled her to him and kissed her again.

'I love you, Abby Maitland' he told her. Abby smiled up at him.

'I love you too, Stephen Hart,' she replied.

_A/N: Okay so I've finished the second chapter of this __fic__. Did you all like it? Please R&R__ to tell me if you liked it. I've just got back from__ New York so __I'm sorry for the lack of updates for the past few days__. Thank you to everyone who reviewed on the first chapter I feel so loved!_

_I have got __an idea for an epilogue chapter, possibly even two or three, __for this __fic__. IF you want me to post it tell me so in a review. If you don't then don't mention it. Though I might just post it anyway... I'll leave it up to you, my wonderful lovely readers to decide if you want me to finish it here or add the epilogue chapter that I've got swimming up in my mind._

_Thank you once again to everyone who reviewed, and thank you to all the readers!_

_Ciao for now_

_Starsword_


	3. Epilogue Pt1

**Epilogue**

**Part 1 ****–****Just Us**

_A year and a half later..._

Stephen leant against the wall of the office he shared with Nick Cutter, his hand in his jacket pocket, nervously fidgeting as he waited for the Professor to finish getting ready to leave. Nick Cutter raised a questioning eyebrow at his young friend, watching him continue to fidget with amusement, until finally he asked exasperatedly:

'Stephen, what the hell is wrong with you these past few days? You've been so fidgety I'm surprised you haven't broken something!'

Stephen looked sheepishly at his friend, but continued to fiddle with something in his jacket pocket. He sighed at the pointed look Nick gave him and pulled out a small blue box.

_Gonna__ change the world_

_Gonna__ make it right_

'What's that?' Nick asked, walking over and pulling on his jacket as he did. Stephen pulled it open to reveal a small diamond set into a silver band.

'Is that what I think it is?' Nick asked him, reaching out to take the box out of Stephen's hand. Stephen nodded.

'I'm going to ask Abby to marry me,' he told him; Nick looked from Stephen to the ring, shock on his face. Stephen eyed his friend worriedly.

'Do you think I'm making the wrong decision?' he asked the older man; the relief showed on his face when Nick looked up at him with a big smile on his face.

'I think it's the best decision you've ever made,' he told him.

'Then I have you're blessing?' Stephen asked; Nick looked at him for a moment.

'Do you need it?'

'No,' Stephen admitted, 'But I'd like to know I have it all the same.'

Nick smiled, placed a hand on the younger man's shoulder and nodded.

'Of course you have it, Stephen, now come on; the rest of the team will be waiting for us to join them. When are you going to ask her?'

'I was thinking of asking her tonight, after dinner,' he replied, closing the lid of the box and carefully putting it back in his pocket.

'Well even more reason to get going then, come on,' Nick said, steering Stephen out of the door and closing it behind him.

_Gonna__ get down on my knees tonight_

_& & & & & &_

Claudia and Abby were already sat at a table talking animatedly about something when Nick and Stephen walked in; Stephen watched his girlfriend as she threw back her head, laughing at something that Claudia had just said, and felt his courage fly away quicker than summer lightening.

'I can't do it,' he said to Nick; the Professor looked at him with a hard look that told him he would be going through with it whether he could or not.

'Stephen-'

'Don't say anything, Nick,' Stephen said, a small smile on his face, 'The more I talk about it the more scared I'll become, just trust me to pick the best time.'

Nick looked as if he was trying not to laugh, 'The great Stephen Hart, fearless animal and dinosaur tracker, scared by Abby Maitland.'

Stephen laughed at that as they made their way over to the table; Connor had just arrived with a tray of drinks with Captain Harvey. Harvey had taken over when Ryan had been killed in the anomaly and had proven to be as firm an ally as Ryan had been; though the team still mourned the loss of the man who had been a good friend to them all over the months they'd worked together. While Connor's crush for Abby had subsided over the months, Harvey had developed one; Stephen watched as he sat down next to her and started to flirt with her. Stephen had nothing against the Captain, he liked the man, but it always made him angry to see him flirt with Abby.

_Gonna__ change it all_

The pair reached the table and Stephen placed his hands on the back of Abby's chair, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

'Hey,' she turned around to kiss him back and smiled, 'What took you so long?'

'I just had something I needed to do,' he told her, taking the seat between her and Conner. Nick had sat between Claudia and Harvey and caught Stephen's eye across the table, the corners of his mouth twitched as he tried not to smile. Stephen groaned inwardly, knowing that Nick wasn't going to make this evening any easier for him; neither was the fact that Abby looked great in her dark jeans and off the shoulder cream top. Nick offered to buy the next round of drinks, and when he brought them back Stephen was grateful to note that he'd slipped some Bacardi into his coke, Nick shot him a discreet wink and Stephen looked down, a small smile playing on his lips. Dinner seemed to take an eternity to Stephen, all the way through he kept making sure the box was still in his jacket pocket, nervously waiting for the time when he would finally get enough courage to ask her.

_Gonna__ find a way_

Everyone had finished dinner and they were sitting around talking when the music started up and couples started moving to the dance floor. Stephen took Abby's hand and stood up.

'You want to dance?' he asked her; she smiled at him and followed him out onto the dance floor, Nick and Claudia behind them.

The whole group ended up dancing for about twenty minutes before Stephen, Nick, and Claudia went back to the table. Claudia because she was getting slightly tired, Stephen because he wanted to try and drain the last bit of Nick's scotch to give him a bit more courage, and Nick to stop him from taking it. Stephen groaned as he watched Harvey try to dance with Abby; Connor shot a glance at Stephen and stepped in before the captain could, something which Stephen sent him a grateful smile for. He noticed Nick and Claudia watching him.

'What?' he asked; Claudia sighed and rolled her eyes.

'Just ask her already! It's killing me trying to be patient!' she said; Stephen looked at Nick, who smiled apologetically.

'She noticed I kept looking over at you and asked me if I liked you more than her,' he explained; Stephen laughed, and then fixed the older man with a questioning look.

'Does anyone else know?' he asked, suddenly suspicious. Claudia tried to look innocent but failed miserably; the two men fixed her with unwavering gazes.

'Alright I told Connor so he could help keep Harvey away from her!' she replied, putting her hands in the air in defeat. Stephen took a deep breath and grabbed Nick's scotch glass, downing the last few sips before the other man could reclaim the glass, smiling at the Professor in an unapologetic manner, and walked turned to the dance floor.

'Wish me luck,' he said.

'Good luck,' the pair said, watching him walk towards the blonde woman, he small blue box now discreetly hidden in his jeans pocket, his jacket on the back of the chair.

_Gonna__ start to change the world today_

Conner grinned and gave him the thumbs up when Abby turned to greet him.

'I'm going back to the table, come on captain,' Connor told them, dragging the captain back with him. Stephen watched them go with an amused grin, he looked back down at Abby and noticed her looking at him questioningly.

'Why did Conner literally drag Harvey away?' she asked him; Stephen shrugged.

'No idea,' he answered, pulling her closer to him as a slow song came on.

_After this song, Stephen,_ he thought to himself,_That's__ when you ask her. No more waiting._He felt his nerves grow as the song went on, and he kept trying to focus solely on the conversation, and not the butterflies in his stomach. As the song neared its conclusion Abby looked into his eyes.

'Stephen are you okay?' she asked him. Stephen smiled.

'I'm fine,' he said, pulling back to hold her at arm's length, 'Abby I need to ask you something.'

She tilted her head to the side, 'What is it?'

'Is he asking her?' Conner asked, Claudia bolted up in her seat and looked at the pair on the dance floor. The group all craned their necks to watch them; Harvey was casting confused glances around the group.

'Who's asking who what?' he asked; the others rolled their eyes.

'Stephen's asking Abby to marry him,' Connor replied, trying to look around a group of men who'd come to stand in their way. Claudia growled in irritation.

'Right,' she snarled, standing up and marching over to the group, handbag in hand.

'What's she doing?' Nick asked.

'Would you please move to the side?' Claudia asked the group, the men laughed.

'Why should we do that, sweetheart?' one of them asked; Claudia narrowed her eyes. She took out her ID card.

'Claudia Brown, Home Office. Now kindly move to one side so we can watch our friends get engaged' she snapped, glaring at them until every last one of them moved out of the way and she stomped back to her seat. The three men watched her, impressed.

'Now, let's see what happens,' she said, settling comfortably back into Nick's side. Nick chuckled, placing an arm over her shoulders.

'You are some woman Claudia Brown,' he commented.

Stephen took hold of her left hand, kneeling down as he did and taking the small box out of his jeans pocket. Abby felt her breath catch in her throat as she watched him, hardly daring to believe what was happening, she felt a smile tug at her lips. Stephen took a deep breath and looked straight into her beautiful blue eyes.

'Abby Maitland, I love you more than you could ever know; you're everything I see, hear, and breathe. I need you in my life, Abby. Will you do me the honour of being my wife?'

He opened the box and looked up into her tear filled, smiling eyes. She could feel the tears welling up as he said his speech and she couldn't help the big smile that spread across her face.

'I love you, Stephen Hart,' she told him, 'Yes I will marry you.'

She felt her inside melt at the smile he gave her, she watched as he took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her ring finger. He stood up and brought her into a passionate kiss, crushing her body against his; when they broke apart he lifted her up and spun her around in the middle of the dance floor; Abby threw back her head, laughing until he put her back down. She wrapped her arms around his neck and reached up to crush her lips to his.

'I keep expecting to wake up from a dream,' she said when they broke apart again. Stephen smiled.

'If it is, then I suggest you don't wake up, I'm not too keen for it to end,' he replied. Abby smiled and rested her head against his chest as they moved to the rhythm of the new song. After a few minutes Stephen looked down at her.

'Shouldn't we go and tell the others?' he suggested; Abby looked over at the table and turned back to him, grinning.

'I think they can wait a little longer. They've probably already guessed the answer anyway,' she replied. Stephen laughed and nodded.

'Just us then?'

Abby nodded, 'For now, just us.'

_A/N: I felt I had to put in an S Club song for Hannah... what did you think? I've got one more chapter planned, though I'm not sure if I'm going to add in another one or two. Do you want to see the wedding?_

_Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, __and to all my readers. I'd written the last chapter and finished it all off at school so I couldn't see the names of people who had reviewed, so I'__ll say my personal thanks now to: Hedwig junior, lov3is4lif3, __rin__, and __Salwyn__ for reviewing on the first chapter and asking me to carry on, thank you so much! I'd like to thank __rina__ again, and CJ for their reviews on the second chapter. Thank you all of you_

_I have at least one more part to this epilogue, but I may add in another two depending how people feel._

_Thank you again to everyone who __reviewed,__ and everyone whose reading this __fic_

_Ciao for now_

_Starsword_


	4. Epilogue Pt2

**Part 2 – ****The ****Wedding**

Claudia Brown sat in the changing room, her legs and arms crossed as she looked around the neutral coloured room. The sound of the cubicle door opening made her look up, a smile forming on her face when she caught sight of the woman who stood in front of her.

'You look beautiful,' Claudia told her, and it was the truth.

Abby Maitland was wearing a floor length white dress; the bodice hugged her torso slightly and was decorated with silver thread that swirled across it, the skirt slightly fanned out from her waist, forming a slight train behind her when she walked. Abby bit her lip nervously as she stood in the cubicle doorway. Claudia smiled and rolled her eyes at the younger woman.

'Come and have a look in the floor length mirror if you don't believe me,' she said, taking Abby's arm and pulling her to stand in front of the mirror.

The blonde stood, looking at her reflection in the mirror with an unreadable look on her face; after a few minutes Claudia couldn't stand it anymore.

'Well? What do you think?' she asked; Abby turned to her with tears in her eyes.

'I love it,' she replied, a huge smile forming on her face.

'Let's go buy it then,' the red head said, gently pushing the blonde back into the cubicle so she wasn't wandering around wearing a wedding dress.

& & & & & &

That evening Abby and Stephen were sat on the sofa in Stephen's flat, a wildlife documentary on about the Amazon rainforest; neither of them were really watching it, their minds on the day only two weeks away that would change both of their lives. Claudia had taken Abby's wedding dress and all the bridesmaids' dresses back to her house where they'd agreed they'd get ready. It was also away from prying men's eyes. Abby snuggled closer to Stephen's side, her legs stretching out slightly along the sofa; she'd spoken to her friend in America who she'd been renting the flat off and they'd arranged that either she and Stephen would move into it or Connor would take over the house sit if they didn't move in. She wrapped an arm around his waist, holding him like a pillow and resting her head on his chest, closing her eyes.

'Tired?' he asked her, a teasing note in his voice. Abby made a tired noise and snuggled closer to him.

'Who knew shopping with Claudia could be so tiring?' she asked sleepily; Stephen laughed softly, tightening his arm around her and switching off the TV. Abby opened her eyes, but stayed where she was; she loved the evenings they spent just sitting together on the sofa, content to be in each other's company without any distractions.

'How much is there left to organise?' Abby asked; Stephen thought for a moment, absent-mindedly running his fingers through her hair.

'Place settings... I don't know if you've done the flowers yet-'

'Claudia said she'd come with me to do that tomorrow,' Abby answered.

'We've sorted out the DJ, the venues booked, caterings booked-'

'So in short we've almost finished the arrangements?'

Stephen grinned at her, 'I think so.'

'Did Nick tell you he was organising you a stag night?'

Stephen's eyes widened and Abby burst out laughing.

'Look on the bright side;' she told him, 'At least it isn't Claudia planning it... I dread to think what's going to happen on my hen night.'

'I guess just running to the airport and flying off somewhere to get married in some remote corner of the world isn't really an option is it?'

Abby hit him on the chest, 'Not after today's shopping for wedding and bridesmaid dresses it isn't; she must have made me try on at least five dresses in one shop! Then she-'

Stephen silenced her with a kiss, smiling as he pulled back and saw her pouting.

'You stopped my rant,' she said; Stephen laughed and kissed her again. For a few minutes they sat on the sofa acting like teenagers after their first date; he'd never felt happier in his life. He'd found a girl who loved him in a way he felt he'd never fully understand; every time they kissed it was like it was their first kiss all over again. Stephen often wondered what he'd done in life to deserve having Abby as his future wife. When they pulled apart Abby tilted her head to the side, a sign that she was thinking about something.

'Have we got a photographer?' she asked; Stephen laughed, running his fingers back through her hair.

'Yes we have, stop worrying it'll be fine,' he told her, 'In two weeks it'll be happening and we'll be able to start our life together, with no plans to worry about.'

'Only the plans concerning dinosaurs wandering through anomalies,' Abby pointed out, smiling at him. He smiled back and leant down to capture her lips again.

* * *

Two weeks later Abby Maitland opened her eyes and smiled despite the nervous butterflies in her stomach. She placed her hand over the one that was flung around her waist and turned over, her smile growing as she watched he man beside her sleeping soundly. She cast a glance at the bedside clock, the glowing digital numbers telling her it was 6:30am and that she still had half an hour left in bed before she had to get up. She snuggled back down under the covers and curled up against Stephen, smile growing as she thought about the day ahead. The planning had all gone fairly smoothly, with a few laughs over the seating arrangements for the dinner, especially when they realised Lester would be sitting next to Abby's eccentric Aunt and Uncle and his wife was sat three tables away from him. She felt Stephen stir next to her and pull her closer to him, his eyes slowly blinking open and focusing on the face of the woman lying next to him.

'Morning,' Abby said cheerily, grinning as he yawned and rubbed his eyes.

'Morning,' he mumbled; he looked at her for a few seconds, then a smile grew on his face, 'It's the big day.'

Abby nodded, 'We better get started, I've got to get to Claudia's by eight and we've got a few things to sort out before then.'

'Abby, relax,' he told her, 'We've got at least an hour before we have to leave to get to Claudia's and Nick's and we're having breakfast at their places anyway; the last minute things will only take us about ten minutes to do if we share them out so we've got about an hour to kill before we actually _need_ to move.'

He ghosted a hand down her side and came to rest on her hip, Abby shivered slightly as she looked into his eyes.

'Stephen, we need to get moving soon-'

Any more protest died as he kissed her neck, slowly moving down to her shoulders and collar bone; Abby ran her hands through his hair as she felt her stomach start doing somersaults. She sat up, their faces ending up only a few millimetres apart; she almost said to hell with it, but the thought of what Claudia would be like if she turned up late to hr house to get ready was enough to freeze her insides with fear.

'Unless you want Claudia to kill me, I suggest we get up now,' Abby told him; Stephen smiled at her and pressed his lips to hers.

'In that case I guess we should get up,' he said, climbing back over her and going to his bedside table, he opened one of the drawers and pulled out a long box.

'I suppose I should wait until later, but I think maybe now would be a better time,' he said, handing her the box. Abby sent him a questioning look as she untied the blue ribbon around it and pulled it open; she took in a breath as she saw the necklace and bracelet lying in the soft cushioning of the box. The bracelet was simple, it was silver with interlinking rectangular shapes with a larger one coming after a group of smaller ones; simple but beautiful and elegant: the type of jewellery Abby loved best. The necklace was a simple silver chain that held two diamond shapes, each with a small pale blue stone in the middle of them, these linked onto a third diamond that linked onto the other two vertically, a third pale blue stone resting in the centre of it. Abby looked up at Stephen and smiled, reaching over to kiss him.

'Thank you,' she said as she pulled away; she smiled at him before she reached under her side of the bed and pulled out her bag, she spent a few seconds looking through it before she pulled out a medium sized box that she handed to him.

'Since we're giving our presents now,' she said with a smile.

Stephen took the box, smiling at her as he pulled off the lid and looked inside; the first thing he pulled out was a smaller box that held a pair of cuff links. Abby grinned.

'Nick told me you were having trouble finding a pair you liked,' she explained, 'So I did the hard work for you and Nick agreed to tell you he had some you could borrow.'

Stephen laughed and pulled her in for a kiss, 'Thank you.'

Somehow the woman could always find something in a matter of minutes what he'd spend two hours trying to find, it was true again now; he noticed, with a smile, that they had their initials on each of the cuff links, though Abby had put hers as A.H. instead of A.M. something that made his heart swell with pleasure. They really were getting married today. He turned his attention to the other smaller box, when he opened it he found it held a ring; engraved on the inside were the words: 'So you can always have a reminder of how much I love you'. He looked over at her and smiled, slipping on the ring finger on his right hand.

'We seem to have had similar ideas as regards jewellery,' he commented, Abby laughed as she took the necklace out of the box. Stephen took it from her hands and signalled for her to turn around; when she did he placed the necklace around her neck and fastened it for her, placing his hands on her shoulders and pressing a kiss to the side of her neck.

'I love you,' he whispered into her ear, Abby smiled and leant back into him.

'I love you too,' she replied, 'Now finish looking at your presents.'

Stephen laughed and turned his attention back to the box, the only three things left inside were three photo frames; one of them showed the whole team at an anomaly sight just after it had closed, Stephen remembered them asking one of the SAS men to take it for them, Claudia had been literally dragged into the photo. The second one was at the same place but the team were being their normal stupid selves and pulling faces at each other and generally having a laugh. The third was just of him and Abby; they were at Nick's place, sat next to each other on the sofa and Connor had taken a picture of them. He looked back up at Abby and kissed her again, this one lasted longer than the previous ones and when they broke apart both of them were breathing slightly heavier.

'We should start getting ready to leave,' Abby suggested. Stephen nodded his agreement and the pair climbed out of bed, the photos now placed in the living room for anyone who came to visit to see; however Stephen kept the one of him and Abby and placed it in his office, that was an almost identical copy to Cutter's office at the University, so that he'd be able to keep her close as he worked.

* * *

Claudia opened the car door, helping Abby out onto the street.

'You ready?' she asked the younger woman; Abby's whole person seem to radiate happiness as she smiled at Claudia.

'You bet,' she replied, 'Lead on.'

She took her father's arm, smiling at him affectionately, before following Claudia, her sister, and two friends up the path to the church.

At the other end of the aisle Stephen Hart stood, fidgeting nervously next to his best man Nick Cutter; Nick grinned at the younger man.

'I haven't seen you this fidgety since you asked Abby to marry you,' he commented, chuckling as Stephen tried to stand still.

'It'll all be fine, stop worrying and just concentrate on watching for her to come through the door,' the professor reassured him. Stephen nodded, taking a deep breath.

'I suppose it's a little too late to try and convince her to run off the airport and get married in some remote corner of the world isn't it?' he asked; Nick laughed and clapped him on the shoulder.

'Stop worrying, Stephen-'

He stopped mid sentence as the organ started to play and the assembled family and friends stood up and turned to look down the aisle. Stephen smiled at the bridesmaids as they walked down the aisle, his smile growing as he saw Nick's expression as he watched Claudia. He saw Abby walking down the aisle on the arm of her father and felt his heart skip a beat.

Claudia smiled to herself as she noticed Stephen's expression when he caught sight of Abby and knew they had made the right choice with the dress. It looked as if he'd completely forgotten about the rest of them assembled in the church and Abby was the only one that mattered; she felt happy for her friend, knowing that her and Stephen were one of the few couples she would call 'perfect'.

Abby felt her stomach start doing flips as she kept her eyes on the man at the end of the aisle, when her father released her arm and Stephen held out his arm for her she smiled brilliantly at him.

'You okay?' she asked; Stephen smiled back at her.

'Never better,' he replied.

And it was the truth. He couldn't have been happier if he'd tried.

_A/N: Well there it __is,__ the second part of the epilogue. Sorry it took so long to write but I wanted to get this one right and there were a few short scenes I wanted to club together in the one chapter. Also the mother has decided I'm not doing enough work so it's getting hard trying to find any free time to actually write in. Since I'm writing this at school it's proving difficult to remember the names of all my reviewers because we can't get onto the website on the school computers, so what I'm going to do is to do a personal thank you for each of you that reviewed on the last chapter._

_Thank you to everyone who did review though, it does make me really happy when I can read what you've written in any spare moment I get. I'd also like to give you an extra big thank you because it's all positive feedback I'm getting. Thank you!_

_I'd also like to say thank you to everyone __whose__ stuck with this __fic__ so far, there are one or two more chapters coming up. At the moment I've got one but it may progress to two I'm not sure. Depends how I feel and how much time I have on my hands._

_Thank you again to my wonderful __wonderful__reviewers,__ and thank you to my lovely readers!_

_Ciao for now_

_Starsword_


	5. Epilogue Pt3

**Part 3 –**** Surprise**

_One __year later..._

Abby stared in shock at the object in her hand; after a few minutes her brain kicked in and she threw it in the bin before finishing what she'd been doing and walking out of the bathroom. She stood in the living room of their flat for a moment, wondering if she was dreaming before the sound of her phone brought her out of her daydream. She went to the table where it was lying and picked it up, glancing at the caller ID quickly before smiling and answering the phone.

'Hey,' she answered her smiling growing.

'Hey, you okay?' he asked her.

'Yeah I'm fine, I was about to come over. Have we got another anomaly?' she asked.

'You guessed it,' he replied with a small laugh, 'Do you want us to pick you up on the way?'

'Alright. I'll see you in five minutes,' she replied, 'Love you.'

'I love you too,' he replied before hanging up. Abby smiled to herself as she walked into the kitchen to get her bag and made sure she had everything for when they came to pick her up.

The team had been given a base for their research into the anomalies, aptly named 'The Anomaly Research Centre', A.R.C for short; she'd been about to make her way to the creature proof building and wonder how she was going to tell Stephen what had happened when he'd called. Now, as she locked the door to their flat, blowing a kiss to Rex who had landed on the coffee table as she walked out, she was still wondering the same thing.

& & & & & &

Five minutes later and the large SUV pulled up and Abby quickly leapt in; leaping over Connor, who'd been about to move over into the middle seat, and sitting in the middle between him and Claudia.

'Where are we going this time?' Abby asked as she slipped her seat belt on; Claudia sent her a quizzical look, she'd probably read the text Abby had sent her telling her she needed to speak to her and not to tell anyone that she'd sent the message.

'Just outside London,' Nick replied, putting the car into gear and setting off again.

'Any idea what we're facing this time?' she asked.

'Not a clue,' Connor replied, firing up his laptop. Abby looked out of the window as they pulled out of their street, subconsciously resting her hand on her stomach and a small smile forming on her face.

'What are you smiling about?' Claudia asked her; Abby snapped out of her daydream, blushing slightly as she turned to face the other woman, hoping that no one else would pick up on her daydreaming state.

'Nothing,' she replied, 'I was just drifting...'

Claudia raised an eyebrow, the blonde replied with a look that plainly said 'leave it I'll tell you later' and the other woman took the hint and just nodded, leaning back in the seat and staring out of the window.

'Abby, are you okay?' Claudia asked about half an hour later. Abby turned to look at her, trying to mentally tell her stomach to stop doing flips and make her get reacquainted with breakfast.

'Yeah, just feeling a bit hot. Can you open your window?' she asked; Stephen turned to give her a questioning look but she just shook her head with a slight smile to say she was okay.

Claudia kept her eye on the blonde as they carried on, in the end swapping seats with her so she was closer to the window when she went a slight shade of green.

Finally, though not soon enough in Abby's opinion, they reached the anomaly site and all climbed out; Claudia lending Abby a sly arm to lean on as she got out of the car. Stephen closed the door and came over to her, running his hand down her arms and checking for any signs of anything being wrong; Claudia decided now was a good time to walk off and leave the two of them alone.

'You okay?' he asked her, placing a hand on her forehead, 'You look slightly green.'

'Thanks,' Abby said, rolling her eyes, 'I hear green's the latest colour to be.'

Stephen laughed, 'There can't be much wrong with you,' he turned serious again, 'Tell me honestly, Abby, are you sure your okay?'

'I'm fine, Stephen, my stomach's just feeling a little queasy,' she replied. Stephen took her hand and looked into her eyes.

'Abby, I know you're not going ot like this,' he said, 'But I think you'd better stick with Claudia and concentrate on communications rather than come in with us.'

Abby sighed, she hated the fact he was right and knew she'd be better off with the other woman, but she enjoyed being with him, Nick, and Connor when they faced the dinosaurs.

'Alright, fine,' she sighed, wrapping her arms around his waist and leant into his chest, 'Just no heroics.'

Stephen laughed and tightened his hold on her; he hated not being with her when they were at an anomaly site, at least when she was with him he knew he was protecting her.

'Make sure I've got a wife all in one piece to come back to,' he told her, pressing a kiss to her hair, 'I love you, Mrs Hart.'

Abby smiled up at him, pressing a kiss to his cheek and then pulling away, 'I love you too. Now get going otherwise the anomaly will have closed by the time you work out what it is we're facing.'

* * *

Claudia walked over to where the blonde was sitting a little way from the SAS communications team; she handed Abby a cup of tea and then sat next to her on the bench.

'So what is it you needed to talk to me about?' Claudia asked her, 'You've got your colour back now anyway. Well you're not so green as you were anyway.'

Abby laughed and took a sip of the tea, she looked at Claudia with a raised eyebrow, 'How do you survive on this stuff?'

Claudia laughed, 'By only taking a few sips and then throwing it away when no one's looking. You're avoiding the question. What is it you wanted to talk to me about? Is everything ok, Abby?'

Abby smiled at her friend, 'Everything's fine, Claudia,' she replied, 'It's better than fine. The only thing is...'

Abby sighed, looking back to the warehouse the boys had disappeared into, 'I don't know how to tell him.'

'Tell who what?'

'Stephen... I don't know how to tell him...'

'Tell Stephen what?' Claudia asked, getting impatient now. Abby looked at Claudia, a huge smile on her face.

'I'm pregnant,' she replied. Claudia looked at the blonde in shock for a few moments.

'So you were feeling ill in the car because-'

'Yep'

'And you haven't told him you're-'

'No...'

'And you're absolutely sure you're-'

'Yes'

Claudia squealed and wrapped her arms around Abby, 'Oh my god, congratulations!'

Abby laughed; then the radio crackled to life.

'Claudia we've got-'

'Way to ruin a really good moment, Nick!' Claudia snapped, pulling away from Abby as the blonde snorted to talk into her headset.

'I'm sorry for ruining what must have been a very intimate moment between you and Abby but I have to break it up just so you can know that we're not all going to die,' Nick replied, sarcasm dripping from his words.

'Hey, can we lay off the mental images please?' Stephen asked, 'As much as I love them both I really did _not_ need that mental image.'

'Hey, watch it you two or I'll tell you something that will definitely make-'

Claudia squealed as Abby leapt at her, the team inside the warehouse exchanged a look as they heard the muffled sounds of a fight on the other end of the radios.

'Sorry about that,' Abby said, obviously trying hard not to laugh, 'Claudia's having a bit of trouble with her ear piece. She accidently dropped it in her tea so she's gone to get another one.'

'Err... right...' Nick said, obviously not entirely sure he believed Abby's story, 'Well it was only a pair of dodos-'

'What?!?' Abby literally jumped off the bench and then immediately regretted it as her head started to swim; she sat back down heavily, starting to wish she hadn't thrown Claudia' headset in her tea.

'It's alright they've both gone back through and the anomaly shut behind them,' Stephen reassured her, 'We're on our way back, we're just going to do a quick sweep to make sure there's nothing else left in here.'

'Alright, tell us when you've finished,' Abby replied, trying to keep her stomach contents from coming up her throat.

'See you in a bit, Abby,' Nick said. The radios fell silent again just as Abby lost her fight with her stomach. She dived behind the bench, wrenching the ear piece from her ear, and emptied her stomach into the bushes, her head starting to swim as she felt another wave of nausea hit her.

'Abby!' she distantly registered Claudia's voice as she bent over again and emptied more of her stomach contents. She heard the other woman calling for help and heard some of the SAS coming over and someone picking her up and carrying her over to the medic's van.

* * *

Stephen and Nick had paired off as they did a final sweep of the warehouse; Nick studied his friend as they moved between the crates in the warehouse.

'Stephen, are you okay?' the professor asked; Stephen sighed.

'I'm just worried about Abby, Nick,' he replied, 'She's been acting a little odd recently, especially just now. She was feeling ill in the car and she actually agreed to stay with Claudia without a fight.'

Nick raised his eyebrows in surprise, 'That's not like her... she always puts up a fight if she's asked to stay behind.'

'I know,' Stephen replied, sighing and looking out over the warehouse 'She's been ill lately,' he confided, 'She's been throwing up these past few days and she think I haven't noticed. It's as if she's keeping something from me. I'm getting really worried about her, she's never this closed about things.'

'Maybe she just didn't want you to worry,' Nick suggested; Stephen nodded thoughtfully.

'Come on, we've finished here, let's get back and re group so we can get out of this damned warehouse.'

Just then the radios crackled to life and Claudia came on, 'Nick, Stephen?'

'Yeah?' Nick asked.

'Abby's been taken ill, she's in the medic's van. You two had better get here soon; the doctor's checking her over at the moment.'

Stephen looked at Nick, panic evident in his eyes, 'Is she okay? What happened?'

Nick put a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder, 'We'll be back in a few minutes, keep us posted.'

'Alright,' Claudia said, the earpieces went dead and Stephen almost took off towards the warehouse door.

'Stephen, wait for me!' Nick yelled, running after the younger man, 'If I'd known he'd move this fast to get to Abby I would have used the excuse ages ago,' he muttered to himself.

* * *

Abby looked up as the doctor came back to stand over her and took her pulse again.

'How are you feeling now, Mrs Hart?' he asked her; Abby smiled slightly.

'Like an idiot for making everyone worry,' she replied, she looked over at the door as Claudia climbed back in.

'I just radioed Nick and Stephen, they're on their way back,' she told the blonde. Abby laughed.

'Stephen's probably running like he's being chased by fifty Gorgonopsid,' she quipped, Claudia laughed and sat on the chair at the foot of the bed.

'Mrs Hart, I have to ask,' the doctor said and Abby turned to face him again, wondering what the question was going to be, 'Did you know you were pregnant?'

Claudia looked at Abby with a smile on her face and Abby grinned.

'Yes, I did, since this morning in fact,' she replied with a laugh; the doctor chuckled.

'I never usually get the chance to ask anyone that, being with the SAS,' he said causing Abby and Claudia to burst out laughing, 'Does Mr Hart know?'

Abby shook her head, breathing in a sigh, 'No he doesn't. Please don't mention it to him, I'd rather tell him myself when the time's right,' Abby asked the medic, the man smiled and nodded.

'I'll go and see where the boys are,' Claudia told her, Abby nodded.

'Of course not, Mrs Hart, and congratulations,' he replied.

'Thank you,' Abby smiled with relief; she hadn't really thought about what Stephen's reaction would be to the news and, if she was honest with herself, she was a little nervous. The door to the van opened and Stephen climbed in, his face filled with concern.

'Are you okay?' he asked her, coming to sit next to her on the bed.

'I'm fine now,' she replied, taking his hand with a smile, 'Just feel like a right nuisance.'

Stephen smiled and shook his head, pressing a kiss to her forehead, 'No you're not. Come on, we're packing up here now, let's go home.'

Abby smiled at him as he helped her up and they climbed out the van; she noticed Claudia standing a few metres away talking to Nick and shook her head in answer to the questioning eyebrow. Stephen wrapped an arm around her waist as they started to make their way over to the pair.

'What do you want for dinner tonight?' he asked her, 'It's just us so you can choose whatever you want.'

Abby slowed to a stop, 'Stephen, it's not going to be just us anymore,' she told him.

Stephen frowned questioningly at her, 'What do you mean?' he asked, running his hands down her arms.

Abby smiled up at him, 'I'm pregnant, Stephen,' she replied, 'You're going to be a father.'

For a split second the doubts that she'd been keeping locked up burst out and flooded her mind. What if he didn't want to be a father? What if he thought they weren't ready? If he thought it was too dangerous to raise a child at the moment with the anomaly project? All of these doubts vanished when his face lit up as he smiled down at her; his one hand came to rest on her hip, the other on her stomach.

'You're pregnant?' he repeated; she nodded, grinning broadly.

'Yes.'

Stephen laughed, picking her up and spinning them both around; Abby laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist as he spun them.

'Stephen, stop!' she gasped out after a few seconds. He did as she asked, putting her down, a large grin still on his face.

'How long have you known?' he asked her.

'I've had my suspicions for a few days,' she replied, 'Since I started getting sick in the mornings and my period was late. I didn't know for definite until today; I did a pregnancy test this morning and the medic confirmed it just now.'

'Why didn't you tell me a few days ago? I was getting worried when you kept being sick.'

Abby hugged him tighter, 'I'm sorry; I only thought I was and I didn't want to tell you and then find out I was wrong.'

'We should get you an appointment with a doctor to get out checked out,' he said, wrapping his arms tighter around her; Abby laughed.

'That can probably wait a few days,' she replied, 'I think we'd better tell people first, don't you?'

'What you think Lester'll throw us a congratulations party?'

Abby laughed, 'He wasn't that bad at the wedding,' she reminded him, 'He _did_ dance to a few songs.'

'Only when he'd had a bit of wine, and his wife convinced him,' Stephen retorted.

'I still think we should tell everyone, especially Nick and Connor,' she replied; Stephen tilted his head questioningly.

'Why not Claudia?' he asked her.

'She already knows,' Abby replied, 'I told her today when you were in the warehouse, at least she knew one reason why I was being sick. I think she had her suspicions anyway, she knew I'd been throwing up the past few mornings; that, coupled with the car episode today, I think she'd already put two and two together; although she did make a big show of it when I told her, maybe she just thought she was being too imaginative...'

'When do you want to tell them?' Stephen asked her.

'Let's all have dinner together tomorrow night,' Abby suggested, 'At our place, we can tell them then.'

* * *

_A/N: Thank you to everyone whose kept with me all the way through this story; I've got one more half chapter to write and then the story will be complete! I'm going to put all my personal replies to all my reviews at the end of the last chapter._

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed on the last chapter, __and also to all my readers! I promise to have the last chapter up soon!_

_Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me from beginning to (almost) end!_

_Ciao for now_

_Starsword_


	6. The End

**The End**

_A __year __ later_

Connor stood outside the painted door, leaning against the doorframe as he waited for it to be opened; if he was honest with himself he was slightly nervous and would rather not have come. He knew he still had a slight crush on Abby and he was unsure whether this was going to do something to make him push her and Stephen away, or whether it would make no difference to their relationship. He had never been entirely sure where he stood with Abby before, and still wasn't now. He was broken out of his musings when the door opened and he was greeted by a smiling Abby.

'Hey, Con!' she said, wrapping her arms around the student and kissing him on the cheek.

'Come on in,' she said, standing to one side so he could walk past her into the house, 'Stephen's in the lounge,' she told him, 'I was just about to get her out of her cot; go on through and I'll be in soon.'

She closed the front door and walked through one of the doors off the hall; Connor watched her disappear and then made his way along the hall into the lounge, his mind starting to wonder if it was too late to walk back out of the house. When he entered the lounge Stephen stood up, smiling at the student.

'Hey Connor,' he said, clapping the student on the back and steering him towards a chair, 'How's the course going?'

Connor shrugged, pulling off his coat, hat, and gloves, 'Not too bad, just been given another paper to do, but it shouldn't be too hard,' he grinned at the other man, 'It's on the habits of dinosaurs from the Permian era.'

Stephen chuckled, 'Well that's one era we have a bit of knowledge about.'

Connor laughed, noticing Stephen's face softening he looked to the door and watched Abby waking in, a pile of blankets in her arms. Connor could see the difference in Stephen's face as he looked at his wife and daughter; his whole countenance softened and it seemed, to Connor, to be a completely different side of Stephen that he was seeing now, there was a look in Stephen's eyes that Connor had never seen when he looked at anyone else; Connor knew that Stephen would do anything for Abby and their daughter, knew he'd protect them with his life, and Connor just wished he could be in Stephen's shoes for just a few hours.

'Do you want a cuppa?' Abby asked him, Connor shook his head.

'I'm alright thanks, I can't stay that long I've got a lot of stuff that I have to do and Cutter's waiting for me to get to the ARC,' he replied; Abby nodded, bouncing the bundle in her arms as the baby started to gurgle.

'Do you want to hold her for a bit?' Abby asked him, Connor paused for a split second before nodded.

'Alright'

Abby smiled at him, 'Come on, Becky, let's introduce you to your Uncle Connor,' she said to the precious bundle in her arms. Connor's face lit up as the phrase settled in his brain and he held Becky in his arms, looking down at the small child that squirmed a bit in his arms before settling down, gurgling happily. Abby walked to perch on the arm of Stephen's chair; she smiled at her husband before turning back to Connor.

'Con, we have something to ask you,' she said, linking her fingers with Stephen's when he took her hand.

'What is it?' Connor asked them, looking up from the small bundle in his arms. Abby smiled at the student.

'Would you be Becky's godfather?'

It took a few seconds for what Abby had said to sink in, 'Me? What about Cutter?'

Abby smiled at him and looked back at Stephen, 'We're hoping to have another baby on the way soon,' she told him, 'We agreed that we'd ask you first to be the godfather of our first child,' Abby smiled at Becky, grinning a toothless happy smile up at Connor, 'And Becky seems to agree her Uncle Connor's the best one for the part.'

Connor looked from Becky, to Stephen, to Abby, and grinned, 'I'd love to' he told them. Stephen grinned at him.

'Thank you, Connor,' he told the student, an arm wrapped around Abby's waist.

Connor had never been sure before how Abby had really felt about him, but now he felt he knew where they both stood, and how he had really felt about Abby for all this time. They loved each other as brother and sister; and he wouldn't have it any other way. Not for the world.

_A/N:__ Oh my god I can't believe I've actually finished a multi-chaptered __fic__! It feels nice that I've actually finished it but at the same time I feel __kinda__ sad... Thank you to everyone who has stayed with this __fic__ right to its completion, I love you all! Especially since it ran away with me a little bit at the end... _

_Thank you to everyone who has reviewed on this __fic__, personal thank __you's__ coming up in a minute. I would like to ask everyone whose reading this if you would review just one last time and tell me what you think about the story in general and whether you're happy with the ending or not. I may post another one shot with a quick look into the future... you never know... I did actually have a plan for another part to the epilogue in mind but I decided not to put it in... Anyway onto my personal thank you notes to everyone who __reviewed:_

_Hedwig Junior: Hi! Thank you so much for both of your reviews! I'm glad you enjoyed the previous chapter, and that you did like Claudia's parts, I thought I could make her into a semi comic character in one or two of the chapters just because the first two had been so depressing! Hope you enjoyed the rest of the story!_

_Rin__: Thank you for reviewing three times! I'm glad you enjoyed the __fic__ so far and I hope you liked the ending. I always thought Connor and Abby were more really good mates than actual relationship characters, if you know what I mean, so I hope you liked the last chapter! Thank you!_

_CJ: Thank you for your review! I couldn't have them mad at each other forever, what did you think of the last few chapters? Did you like them?_

_S__a__l__wyn__Hi, thank you for your reviews! Are you a __Nightwish__ fan too? I love them! I can't wait until I can see them in March! After I'd listened to the song a few times I said to my friend 'This would make a great __Stabby__ angst one shot' and then it progressed, __lol__! I hope you liked the last chapters!_

_Lov3is4lif3: Heya! Thank you for all your reviews, I love your __pic__it's__ great! I'm glad you enjoyed the __fic__ so far and I hope you liked this last chapter too! Thank you so much for staying with it the whole way through!_

_Primevalcrazyalice__Heya, thank you for your review! I love the __Stabby__ pairing, it just seems to work! I can't wait for the next series, hopefully they get together soon. Damn Helen and her meddling! Have you heard the song before? If not check it out it's amazing! Thank you for your review!_

_Well that's all my personal thank you notes done and now all that's left is to say another big thank you to everyone __whose__ read every single chapter to this __fic__ and to say, for the last time:_

_Ciao for now!_

_Starsword_

_P.S. Check out my other multi-chaptered Primeval __fic__, I'll be concentrating on that one more now!_


End file.
